Reign of the Hunters

Chapter 63 Second Rally

“The player Flawless Reflection would like to add you as a friend.”

Qin Churuo? Ye Ci was momentarily stunned. Senior Qin was a person with his own principles. He must’ve decided to contact Ye Ci personally instead of troubling Fang Shushu as the middleman.

She accepted the friend request.

Qin Churuo immediately contacted Ye Ci. After giving Ye Ci a conventional greeting, he stated his intention for contacting her, “Gongzi You, we’re stuck before we could even reach the first BOSS. Our Rogues figured out that there was an Elite Monster hidden somewhere, but we just couldn’t find it. I thought it was a BUG, but the officials claimed that there was nothing wrong with it. Do you have any ways of getting past that guy?”

World Conqueror’s progress was hindered by the same problem faced by Steel-Blooded Battle Spear. Ye Ci gave thought about the matter for a moment, and then decided to not share any info with Qin Churuo.

She had always been a responsible person. Since she was still part of Steel-Blooded Battle Spear, and have not helped the guild to clear the dungeon yet, she would never share any information with somebody else. “We’re stuck at the same place as well.”

Ye Ci managed to dodge Qin Churuo’s question skillfully. She avoided the topic of her knowledge of a possible solution to the problem, and instead directed her words towards Steel-Blooded Battle Spear’s progress.

Thinking that Ye Ci had no solution for getting past the Elite Monster either, Qin Churuo let out a sigh. “This dungeon is so hard. I thought that as a leader of a party, you’d know a thing or two.”

Ye Ci laughed, “I’m not the one in charge.”

“What?” Flawless Reflection was shocked, “I’ve heard rumors that you’ll be leading Steel-Blooded Battle Spear’s progress in exploring the Frosty Wastelands. That was why all the other guilds were so desperate to clear the dungeon. They’re afraid that you guys will get the First Blood. Why are you not the one in charge?”

Ye Ci was momentarily stunned. She had no knowledge about the rumor. She had unintentionally let a vital piece of information slip. Unable to come out with an excuse to cover it up, Ye Ci said, “We’re taking turns to command the party.”

Flawless Reflection’s suspicion was not aroused. After all, every guild has multiple commanders, and each of them needed time to familiarize themselves with the dungeon.

“Since you’re not the current commander, how about helping us out? I will fully compensate you.” Flawless Reflection immediately had the thought of enticing Ye Ci.

Ye Ci however, declined the offer, and Flawless Reflection decided to let that matter go. He instead asked for Ye Ci to share information with him if her guild managed to make any progress.

While the two was busy chatting, another conversation was taking place. Dong Yin who was unable to find Ye Ci during the meeting of the first and second squadron sent Thousand Sunsets a private message, “Thousand, why is Little Ci not here?”

“Oh, this is a meeting for core members, she was not informed.” Replied Thousand Sunsets.

“Isn’t she one of the commanders?”

“She was not the one in charge yesterday, she wouldn’t know anything. So it’s meaningless to call her over anyways. Besides, she’s famous, I don’t want to waste too much of her time.”Ssaid Thousand Sunsets to Dong Yin with a dull tone.

“B-but she obtained so many First Bloods, maybe she’s experienced in this kind of stuff. Don’t we need more ideas and opinions to solve this dungeon? Besides, she’s so skillful...”

Thousand Sunset’s anger began to rise. He knew that Gongzi You was very capable, and had tried his best to buy her loyalty. But he came to realise that Gongzi You’s thoughts were not as simple as those that a normal 18 year old would have. She was not as easy to manipulate as Dong Yin and Yi Cang. That was why Thousand Sunsets began to harbor some hostility towards Ye Ci.

A capable person who couldn’t be controlled was of course less favourable than his brothers that were like his own arms.

His lack of restriction towards Ye Ci earlier on, followed by appointing her as Battle Commander and granting her access to the Guild Warehouse were his attempts to buy her loyalty. Thousand Sunsets had never expected Ye Ci to be so unenthusiastic towards Steel-Blooded Battle Spear. That was the main source of his anger. Ye Ci’s behavior of passiveness after being provoked by Little Dan had also provoked Thousand Sunsets’ anger.

Must she throw a fit after being reprimanded by the commander? Although she was probably right in that matter, would it hurt to just let it go? Can’t she give some constructive suggestions about clearing the dungeon? Was she a princess or something?

Thousand Sunsets cut Dong Yin off before she could say more, “I granted her access to the Guild Warehouse exactly because she’s skillful. I even made her the guild’s Battle Commander. But what has she done for the guild? She didn’t even show up during our battle with Tang Dynasty. Little Dan and Crimson deserved the position more than her, but I gave her that position anyways. But how did she repay me? It’s just a few First Bloods, does that give her the right to be so high and mighty? She doesn’t even give a shit about the guild’s regulations. I have never doubted her capabilities, but someone must also have a good personality. One must not forget the guild even when one becomes famous. Yin Yin, let me tell you something, stay away from people like this. She’s selfish and cold. She might sell you out someday.”

Dong Yin was also angry after listening to Thousand Sunsets’ words, “We’ve known each other for more than 10 years. I know her very well. She’s just awkward when it comes to social interaction. She’s a good person.”

Thousand Sunsets creased his eyebrows. He did not want to argue with Dong Yin. A little girl like her was always overly naive and stubborn. It was very hard to change her views once she made up her mind.

He started his relationship with Dong Yin because she was a childhood friend of Ye Ci. He had hoped to gain useful information from Ye Ci through Dong Yin. But Ye Ci had never shared any guides and tips with her. This gave him an impression that Gongzi You was someone who would disregard even her best friends.

He sneered at Dong Yin, “If she’s such a good person, why don’t she tell you anything about the Armored Giant Tortoise when asked?”

Dong Yin was made speechless. She stared at the sneer showing on Thousand Sunset’s face. Was this the Thousand Sunsets who had always treated her very very well? Was this the Thousand Sunsets that wouldn’t even use any harsh words on her?

Deep down, Dong Yin knew that Thousand Sunsets accepted her because of her relationship with Ye Ci. But she had always tried to convince herself that it was not the truth. She was deeply shocked by Thousand Sunsets’ sudden words.

She suddenly remembered something Ye Ci had said to her.

“It doesn’t matter if he’s a good person. The most important thing is: Does he treat you well?”

Noticing Dong Yin’s silence, Thousand Sunsets softened his tone, “Yin Yin, you’re different from people like Ye Ci. You’re pure and sincere, while she’s cunning and calculative. I’m afraid that you’ll get hurt by her. That sort of person would never be accepted into a guild if not for us taking her in. She has absolutely no team spirit.

Dong Yin stood up, slapped away Thousand Sunsets’ hand that was resting on her shoulders, and left the conference room. This attracted the attention of the others who were present. Thousand Sunsets merely waved his hand, “She’s just throwing a tantrum, don’t mind her.”

Dong Yin sought out Liu Chang after leaving the conference room. She had intended to tell Liu Chang the whole story, but in the end kept it to herself.

Not able to leave Red Lake City, as her guild would resume exploring Frosty Wasteland later that day, Ye Ci had nothing to do but loiter around the city while clearing her daily quests. Through her efforts, her Military Rank had risen from First Rank Soldier to Second Rank Soldier.

After completing her daily quests, Ye Ci hunted for beasts nearby the city and collected their meat to level up her cooking skills. Ol’ Three’s appetite increased along with his level. He was no longer satisfied with normal food. This was why Ye Ci was forced to learn some cooking skills.

At 5pm that evening, Ye Ci went offline with Bai Mo to eat dinner before going back online.

She went online just in time to gather with the party at 6pm.

The entry limit for a 25-man dungeon was once a day. If one wished to store their progress, they’d need to pay certain amount of gold coins according to the dungeon’s difficulty to a specific NPC.

There was, however, no need for the party to record their progress, as they had not even met the first BOSS. They started all over again, but the atmosphere was gloomy, and even Peacock Blue was overly quiet.

When they reached the place where their progress was halted, Little Dan immediately ordered a Rogue to remove all his equipment before he placed some food at a very specific spot.

Little Dan and company were quite smart. They were able to figure out the key to lure out the invisible monster within a day. But with nearly 200 different kinds of food, it would take a long time for them to figure out the right one.

Ye Ci sighed as she watched the Rogue.

If the food placed by the invisible monster was not the one it liked, the person who placed the food would be killed instantly. Ye Ci could still remember the countless lives lost when players tried offering different sorts of food to lure the monster out. It could be said that the path to clearing the dungeon was paved by the corpses of countless players.